Wednesday, December 15, 2021
CENTCOM launched Task Force Iron Gate on Nov 7 to target Iran's land and Caspian Sea routes, the same day it says a US aircraft disabled a cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman.
US Central Command announced a new task force on Saturday, November 7, to extend the naval blockade of Iran onto land. CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper said Task Force Iron Gate will track weapons, dual-use technology, sanctioned materials and illegal revenue moving across Iran's land borders and the Caspian Sea, Gulf News reported. The team is about 20 civilian and military personnel based in Tampa, Florida. Cooper said the goal is to "constrain Iran's ability to finance terrorism, rebuild weapons factories, and replenish their military." CBS News noted the announcement did not say whether military operations are involved. No Iranian response to the task force had been reported as of Sunday morning.
The same day, CENTCOM said a US aircraft fired precision munitions at the stern of the M/V Huda in the Gulf of Oman. The St. Kitts and Nevis-flagged bulk carrier had called at an Iranian port. CENTCOM said the crew ignored repeated warnings and tried to break the blockade. The UK Maritime Trade Operations center confirmed a strike on a vessel about 18 nautical miles east of Khor Fakkan, UAE, and said the crew's status was unknown, The Maritime Executive reported. No independent source has confirmed the warnings CENTCOM describes. It is the first ship the US has reported disabling since October 10.
Other accounts from the same waters remain unconfirmed. The UAE National Guard said it rescued 22 crew from a cargo ship that caught fire in the Gulf of Oman, but it did not name the ship. Whether that ship is the Huda has not been established. Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed two more tankers hit mines in the Strait of Hormuz, but maritime officials have not confirmed it, CBS News said. The Guard also said Iran has lifted its own 1,200-mile limit on missile range. Drop Site News, which has tracked earlier strikes from the ground, had not reported on the Huda or the task force as of this morning. UKMTO counts 133 vessels damaged in the region so far this year.
For an American household, the blockade lands at the pump. GasBuddy put the national average for gasoline at $4.06 a gallon on November 6 and expects it to dip below $4 this week. The EIA put on-highway diesel at about $6.29 a gallon on November 2. Both numbers move with every headline from the region. The Strait of Hormuz and the US economy are tied together through oil, shipping insurance and freight, so a tighter blockade can keep prices high even while traffic flows.
Start with the half-tank habit and keep a small fuel reserve on hand. Fill up on the dips rather than the spikes. If you rely on a car for work, the steps to prepare for a gas shortage cover trip planning and a buffer that carries you through a short squeeze. Families who keep fuel at home can follow the rules to store gasoline long term safely, with the right containers and a rotation schedule.
Claims from every side will keep arriving faster than they can be checked. Identifying misinformation starts with waiting for a second, independent source before you change your plans. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is due at a G7 foreign ministers meeting in Paris on November 9 and 10, which is the next point where the diplomatic picture could shift.
